American League Roundup : Recharged Oliver Turns On Power for Blue Jays

For most of his major league career, Al Oliver was a good hitter with some power. As recently as 1982, he hit 22 home runs for Montreal. In 1983, the lifetime .305 hitter lost his home run stroke. He hit only a few that season and none at all last season or early this season with the Dodgers.

Now 38, the left-handed hitter has suddenly regained his home-run stroke. On July 10, his first game with the Toronto Blue Jays, leaders of the American League East, Oliver homered after going 175 games and 511 at-bats without hitting one.

Sunday, Oliver hit his fifth and most important one leading off the 10th inning at Kansas City, and Garth Iorg followed with another as the Blue Jays finally salvaged a win over the Royals, 5-3. The Blue Jays lost the first two games at Kansas City and were in danger of having the surging New York Yankees cut their lead to six games. But Oliver, who reached double figures in home runs in each of his first 12 seasons in the majors, came through with his first game-winning hit.

“He’s been crushing the ball since we got him from the Dodgers,” Manager Bobby Cox told the Associated Press. “He’s still a class hitter. I know one thing: he’s changed our club around quite a bit. He’s a good influence and he can hit.”

Used sparingly by the Dodgers, Oliver was batting .253 when they traded him. Most of his hits were singles and he drove in only eight runs in 79 at-bats. In 76 at-bats for Toronto, he has 14 RBIs.

“I think it’s simple,” Oliver said. “When you play every day, then all of a sudden you’re not playing, your timing is going to be off. Plus, being in a winning situation where you’re psyched up has something to do with performance. You’re up mentally and you know what your job is.

“For the last year-and-a-half, I went to the ballpark not knowing what my job was, after 15 years.”

Although he finally gave up three hits, Tom Henke improved his record to 3-0 with 2 shutout innings after George Brett hit his 16th homer to tie the game in the eighth. Henke had pitched eight hitless innings since coming up from Syracuse of the International League last month.

New York 5, Boston 3--The Yankees have issued a warning to the Blue Jays.

“We’ve been 14 (actually 14 1/2) behind in one year and we came back, so I’m not worried about seven behind,” Manager Billy Martin said after the Yankees completed a three-game sweep at Boston.

Martin referred to 1978 when the Yankees made a fantastic late-season comeback. That year Ron Guidry had a 25-3 record. Once again he is the ace of the staff.

Guidry, with relief help in the eighth, improved his record to 15-4, becoming the league’s first 15-game winner. He has won 14 of his last 15 decisions.

The Yankees have won six in a row. Leading the surge has been defending AL batting champion Don Mattingly. Mattingly was 3 for 5 in this game and scored three runs. He is 13 for 24 in the last six games and has raised his average to .329, 26 points behind Brett, the league leader.

Chicago 4, Milwaukee 1--After losing five in a row for Buffalo in the International League, 20-year-old Joel Davis was a little surprised to be called up by the White Sox.

But the right-hander overcame the shock and pitched brilliantly at Chicago to win his debut. Davis held the Brewers, a heavy-hitting team lately, to five hits and a run in seven innings. He struck out six and walked only two.

Carlton Fisk hit his 30th home run, Greg Walker his 16th and recently recalled Joe DeSa his first.

“It was kind of a shock,” Davis said. “I just thank God I was able to go out there and do what I did today.”

Seattle 9, Oakland 6--The Mariners appeared to be on the way to their sixth consecutive defeat when the A’s scored six times in the first inning at Seattle.

But Al Cowens and Dave Henderson each drove in two runs in an eight-run third inning that turned the game around and enabled Bill Swift to improve his record to 4-6. Swift survived the six-run first and went seven scoreless innings.

Phil Bradley went 4 for 4 for the Mariners. He doubled and drew a walk with the bases loaded in the big inning.

Cleveland 7, Detroit 2--Neal Heaton gave up 11 hits, but he struck out 10 at Cleveland and earned his first victory since July 8. One of the runs he yielded was unearned.

Julio Franco had three hits for the Indians and drove in the go-ahead run in the third.

Baltimore 9, Texas 4--Mike Young singled in a five-run second inning at Arlington, Texas and hit a three-run home run in the sixth inning to spark the Orioles. Young’s home run was his 15th.

Young’s 15th homer of the season came off Dave Stewart after Cal Ripken singled and Fred Lynn walked.

Before Young’s homer broke the game open, Texas got within 6-4 with a run in the fifth on George Wright’s first home run since last Sept. 21.

Sammy Stewart (5-4) replaced Dennis Martinez with two out in the fifth and held the Rangers to two hits the rest of the way.